Unexpected Guest
by Mayhem N. Jeans
Summary: Lt Pierce meets Riann Tamor, a rouge Jedi consular, in a rather shocking and revealing way. Awkwardness ensues. (Note, Riann is my DS Jedi consular, she teams up with my Sith W and her group, sort of replacing Jaesa) (Rated T for sensuality)
1. Chapter 1

Pierce sloughed out of his hard but seductively warm bed. He had always imagined that once he became a soldier, he would grow out of his morning sloth habit, but that had never really happened, much to the chagrin of his superiors. Staggering, he slowly made his way to the bathroom. A fast hot shower would do wonders for his disposition.

The past few days had been murderously slow. When he had decided to sign on to work for the reputable Sith lord, Soarise Grae, he had anticipated a life of danger and excitement. But instead, he was constantly being bullied, _bullied_, by a little prissy officer named Quinn who was constantly licking Grae's boots. Who, of all people, didn't seem to mind his clinginess one bit, but instead seemed to enjoy it. And now the two of them had pranced off together for some obscure 'need to know basis' only mission on a quarantined planet.

So, he, the highly trained, former Spec Ops soldier, had been left behind on the ship to sort the mail and feed the fish. Definitely not something he'd be writing home about anytime soon.

As he shuffled to the bathroom, he noticed a box of breakfast ration bars was opened up and lying out on the counter, surrounded by several empty wrappers_. Suppose the boss and Quinn are back_, he thought to himself. _Finally._ Maybe they'd move on from this dumbfounded mission of theirs and go to something a little more exciting that he could join in on.

Pierce pushed open the bathroom door, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. A sharp shriek suddenly startled him awake though.

In front of him in the bathroom was a naked woman. A woman he had never seen before. She pulled a large towel over her body (his towel) but not before he got a glimpse of her well-proportioned curves. Very well-proportioned curves. The woman blushed at him, her dark wet hair curling in ringlets around her face.

"Sorry," She chirped nervously, "I guess I had forgotten to lock the door properly,"

"What are you doing here?" He asked, shaking his head. The tips of his ears were burning.

She smiled, nonchalant, and shrugged, "Oh, I was just washing this half inch of grime I had on me off. The jungle is not a kind place,"

"No," He replied, crossing his arms, "I mean, what are you doing on this ship? You'd better explain yourself before I push you out the airlock, missy,"

The easy grin faltered off her face. For a second he felt almost guilty about that, "Oh…Oh!" She exclaimed, smacking her forehead, "I'm so sorry, my brain's a mess right now. My name is Riann. I'm here with Soarise and Malavai, we met down below,"

"Uh-huh," that was all he could think to reply before he simply stepped back and closed the door.

Face flaming with an uncontrollable blush, he hurried to the Captain's Quarters and pounded on the door. Moments later, Quinn opened up the door, his face dirty and smudged from dirt, "What is it, Lieutenant?" He asked in sharp but tired voice. The captain looked like he had been to hell and back.

"Who is our guest on board?" Pierce asked, "You do know that there is some strange woman in our bathroom, don't you?"

Quinn sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, "I knew that would happen," He muttered, "Her name is Riann Tamor. She's a… physician… we found below on Le'Andor. Lord Grae has enlisted her in our mission to stop the Inquisition,"

"A physician? Isn't that your job?"

The captain shook his head, "It's a little more complicated than that, Lt. You'll be briefed when our Lord is ready," He looked dismayed at Pierce's rumpled sleep clothes, "You'll want to get dressed before that, I'm sure,"

Pierce said nothing else as he turned away. Sure, getting dressed had been his priority until he found a strange woman in his bathroom. Now his brain was scrambled, making processing thought beyond his capacity.


	2. Chapter 2

As he turned the corner back into his barracks, he was perturbed to find her, now dressed in a loose white bathrobe that Pierce recognized as being one of Quinn's precious robes. She was looking at the spare bunk across from his. She barely glanced over at him, "Sorry about earlier," She apologized quietly.

He shrugged, not wanting to make a big deal. He wished she had tied the robe just a little bit more securely. She looked at him with surprisingly big blue eyes. They almost looked like a cartoon characters' eyes, unrealistically perfect. Already her hair was drying into bushy curls that twisted and spiraled in all directions halfway down her back. Freckles were spackled across her sloped nose and round cheeks. She wasn't very old, maybe mid-twenties, a couple years younger than him.

Riann noticed his silence, "What's your name? Pierce? Lord Grae had mentioned you would also be onboard,"

"I'm always onboard," He muttered, walking over to his trunk at the foot of his bed. He opened up the latched lid and began to dig out his casual uniform.

"Excuse me?" She asked, "I didn't catch what you said, sorry,"

"Nothing," He replied tersely. He could sense her flinch at his sharp answer, but couldn't find it in himself to be chatty with her right now. There was something off about her. He couldn't place his thumb on it, but she was definitely odd.

"You don't trust me,"

Her voice was soft and calm, with a touch of heaviness. He looked up at her. Her hands were clasped behind her back as she stood still.

"No, not really. Sorry,"

She shrugged, "I don't blame you. As a Jedi, I have no idea what I'm really doing here, I mean-"

"Whoa, wait, what? A _Jedi_?" He interrupted her and stood up to face her.

Shock welled up in her eyes, "Oh! You didn't know…well… This has been awkward, Pierce," She tried to feign a smile at him, but his cold stare melted it off her face before it could settle.

"I had hoped to avoid this," A cool voice purred from the doorway. Pierce turned around to see Lord Soarise Grae standing, silhouetted. Riann looked relieved to have the Sith here. _What kind of a Jedi is she?_ He wondered to himself, "Pierce," Lord Grae continued, "I should have briefed you beforehand. Come to the headquarters with me so I can explain the entire situation,"

"Yes, m'lord," He said, and turned back to his clothes trunk so that he could dress.

"No, just come with me now," Lord Grae sighed, impatient, "The sooner we clear this up, the better,"

With a dejected glance at his nightshirt and a subtle glare at Riann, he followed the Sith Lord.


	3. Chapter 3

Soarise sat down in her chair at the head of the table. Her hair was still damp, but tied up in its normal elegant bun. A stray strand had crept out and was curling against her cheek. Pierce sat in his own chair to the left of her, feeling self-conscious and cold. Soarise didn't look angry, only tired.

"Lieutenant, things have gotten more complicated. As if that was possible. Now it seems that the very core of the Jedi Order has long been corrupted as well,"

"So much for being the holy incorrigible order," Pierce scoffed.

"If the Inquisition is powerful enough to have practically taken over the Jedi, then who knows how deep seeded it is everywhere else. Now we have to root them out of there, and if the Jedi were taken, then it's inevitable that the entire Republic has also been. Which makes our job of stamping the Inquisition out incredibly more difficult, as you can imagine,"

He nodded. Now wonder she looked so exhausted. This whole business of wiping out the Inquisition was at first just taking down a small group of sadistic radicals. Now they were going to be going against the Jedi and Republic? Could that mean that the Empire, the very people who were sponsoring them, could also be tainted?

"Riann was a Jedi until she called out the corrupted officials. So they arranged for her to be abandoned on a ruined jungle world, which is where we found her. But that is only a slice of the problem. She is also a healer who had been working on a project secretly sponsored by the Inquisition under the guise of the Jedi.

They've manufactured a plague, Pierce. And it's mutated out of anyone's control. This plague is derived from an ancient Ratatak alchemy formula. As if that wasn't bad enough in and of itself. But with this mutation, an entire planet can be wiped out in weeks, its victims suffering a fate worse than death. Which is exactly what happened below.

But things have gotten a little worse than they could have. Riann reacts different to the plague; she can communicate with it through the Force. When I was down below, I could sense the plague's presence, but she can actually communicate to it. It's strange, I know. But that's why she's here. Plus, she knows the inner workings of the Jedi order and can help us pinpoint direct targets,"

"But how do we trust her?" Pierce asked simply, still trying to comprehend what she had just told him.

"If you had seen her," Soarise replied, a sad look in her eyes, "Covered in grime and blood as she was fighting off the monsters created by the mutated plague that she had helped create then you would understand. She's angry, Pierce, angrier than I've ever seen anyone before, especially for a Jedi. Her power is incredible and we need that. I understand and appreciate your reserve for trusting her. I'm not asking you to like her or even be cordial to her. But I am asking you to trust her the same way you and I trust each other,"

He sat silent, contemplating what she had just told him. Finally, he looked up to her, "Yes, milord," He replied, nodding. This Riann girl, he still wasn't 100 percent sold on, but he trusted Soarise with his life, so therefore, he had to accept Riann. Certainly wasn't going to be nice to her, but he would trust her.


End file.
